Fujah - America's Stories - Missouri Culture

"The government considers you a terrorist threat if you oppose abortion, own a gun or are a returning war veteran." - Lamar Smith, R-Texas, April 15, 2009, in response to Department of Homeland Security Report: "Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment."

1. Gun Control - Second Amendment Rights

After being elected, Obama announced that he respected Second Amendment rights but also wants to keep guns away from children and criminals. He supports banning private transfers of firearms at gun shows. This is commonly referred to as "closing the gun show loophole." He also supports making guns in America childproof and permanently reinstating the expired Assault Weapons Ban, which is a prohibition on the sale to civilians of certain semi-automatics.

Liberals are saying that Obama has to do something about gun control because of the extent of the violence that has been happening recently. If he does nothing, there backlash of anti-gun activists will be demanding answers to why he hasn’t done anything to prevent these gun crime deaths.

“If Obama wasn't in support of tightening gun control laws, there is a good chance that he never would have been named senator of Illinois, let alone a presidential candidate. Obama had to support stricter gun control laws before anyone in Illinois would even begin to listen to him …. Being a presidential candidate from the dangerous Chicago area and witnessing the city's outcry for an end to this violence, Obama was basically forced to take a strong stance on gun control.”  [Harris, Andre. (March 10, 2009). Obama and gun control. The Des Moines Register.]

Conservatives are mostly concerned because Obama wants to ban all guns that can pierce an officer’s armor, but all hunting rifles are in this category. Hunters are arguing that this is taking away the 2nd amendment right that says we as United States citizens have the right to bear arms. If Obama is able to pass stricter gun laws, hunters will suffer, along with any other citizen wanting to exercise their right to own a firearm that fits into this category.

 
“Conservatives scrambled to stock up on all firearms when Obama became president because they were afraid that laws would come out that will limit what they can use. One report says that between Nov. 3 and Nov. 9 of 2008, the FBI received 374,000 background check requests on gun buyers. This was up 49 percent from the same time period last year. Gun shops in 15 states have seen their sales increase around 50 percent.”  [Harris, Andre. (March 10, 2009). Obama and gun control. The Des Moines Register.

H.R  .  45 :  Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009

To provide for the implementation of a system of licensing for purchasers of certain firearms and for a record of sale system for those firearms, and for other purposes.

Introduced by Representative Bobby Rush (D-IL), Jan. 6, 2009. Referred to Committee. (govtrack.us)

Virginia Tech Massacre used to "prove" something? Hear both sides.

But if one side (of the gun control issue) thinks the lesson of the Virginia Tech massacre is that we need more gun control, the other side - the gun lobby - says it proves we need less.

 

Philip Van Cleave says the ban on guns on college campuses should be lifted. "If just one student 21 or older had a permit and had been armed that day - I mean the first time a police officer showed up, they didn't even fire a shot. He saw the police coming, he killed himself. It was over. The first time somebody would've been able to show him resistance, it would've stopped him. I'm convinced he would've killed himself and probably saved a whole bunch of lives at that point."

 
[CBS 60 Minutes, Fear Of Tighter Gun Control May Be Contributing To Big Rise In Gun Sales, April 12, 2009]